I have a Whirlpool 30 gal. electric water heater. Model E1F30HD035V, product # 0826237, dual element. It is in a seasonal home. Last weekend June 28 it worked fine. This weekend July 4th, it won't heat. I power it off between weekends to save on electric cost because no one is there to use it.

1st check the circuit breaker that supplies power to the water heater. If that is OK then check and see if you have power to the heating elements on the water heater. If not then check and see if the thermostat on the water heater has power to its connections and verify that it is calling for the water to be heated. Last if all these checks are OK then you must have a burnt out heating element. Some can be replaced but you will have to drain the water from the heater before replacing the elements.

If your heater only has one access panel, then it only has one element. These are mostly in the 30 gal. electric models.

1) There is a water heater condition called 'stacking'
http://waterheatertimer.org/Stacking.html

2) Dual element tanks are 240Volt.
Thermostats turn off 1 leg of 240Volt circuit.
If element is shorted to ground through center of element, it might not trip the breaker.
In this case, the bad element would continue heating with 120V through ground wire.
http://waterheatertimer.org/How-to-test-water-heater-element.html

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If you have some hot water from dual-element water heater, then that tells us:
Water heater is 240Volt.
Upper element is working. If upper element is not working, then heater has NO hot water.
Reset button is not tripped.
Electricity and breaker to water heater are delivering 240Volts to heater.

Remaining suspects are:
1) Bad upper or lower thermostat: Solution: replace both thermostats for 28$.
http://waterheatertimer.org/How-to-replace-thermostat-on-electric-water-heater.html
2) Bad lower element: Solution test and replace element:
http://waterheatertimer.org/How-to-test-water-heater-element.html
http://waterheatertimer.org/How-to-replace-water-heater-element.html
3) Loose wire or loose connection: Solution: open both covers and inspect for burning. Tighten all screws very tight.
4) Bad wire: Solution: Buy cheap multimeter from Home Center and do a 30 minute troubleshoot of entire water heater before replacing any parts:
http://waterheatertimer.org/How-to-troubleshoot-electric-problems-with-water-heater.html
When testing for voltage, rotate multimeter dial to 240-250-277VAC
When testing elements or continuity, rotate multimeter dial to Ohms.

Rheem uses a 4-bolt 4500 Watt element available at hardware store and some home centers:
To confirm wattage, see label on side of tank. Also note you label shows gallons, and show a serial number that has date of manufacture in fist 4 digits, for example 0605.. is June 2005.

The element is removed using a wrench. Remove 4 bolts. If bolts are stuck, then use WD40 and ratchet with extension. You can also drill out the bolt and re-tap holes with new thread. Don't drill through wall of tank which is about 1/4" thick.


For generic step by step for replacing water heater element and cleaning out tank:
http://waterheatertimer.org/How-to-replace-water-heater-element.html
Link shows how to drain tank, check if electricity is off, and general sequence of steps.
Rheem element that you buy comes in package with specific step by step for replacing that element. Be sure to clean opening of any debris before installing new element.

the elements on your water heater are shot..these are found behind the panels and can be replaced there is an upper and a lower

A 40 gal. electric water heater will give you aprox. 32 gal. of hot water in one setting, since they do not reheat as quickly as gas. So if you are using a newer 1.5 or 2.0 gpm shower head. You could take a 16 minute shower with straight hot water. If you are running 2 new shower heads at once you could get 8 minutes. If you using the tub spout the times decrease. Some of my customers like to turn up the temerature on the thermostat a little so they can mix more cold and get it to last a little longer. Be very careful doing this.
If your water heater has a lot of calcium built up in it the times will decrease.
With out seeing the heater, you mention it is a mobile home heater so I am guessing that it is bottom fed.
I hope this has helped.

Hi,
The noise is inherent in electric hot water heaters. It is the noise that the water makes when it is being heated by electric heating elements. Mineral buildup on the elements can make it worse, so changing the elements can help...but will not totally elimenate the noise. When I install a new tank and turn it on all I have to do is listen to it to see if it is working or not...even brand new will make a sound...it is the sound of hot water... :-)

heatman101

I am assuming that everything was fine and then all of the sudden available hot water usage time dropped.

On a dual heating element hot water heater it can be

1. Internal tank loaded with sediment (drain and purge from lower garden hose fitting)

2. Thermostat or element problem with ONE of the 2 heaters. (Trouble shoot element thermostat)

3. Check Circuit breaker for partial trip of the breaker.

Hi,
Go to this link and page down, it gives you the wiring diagram for a dual element hot water heater.

http://www.plumbingsupply.com/element-installation-instructions.html

I hope that this will help you to solve your problem!

Thanks for using Fixya!!

Heatman101